


Around the Dinner Table

by HannaVictoria



Series: Swearing in American Sign Language [2]
Category: Maggot Boy
Genre: And feels, Brotp, Families of Choice, Fantastic Relious debate, Fluff, Gen, Insane Plans, Teenagers being adorable butheads, all of the fluff
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-05-27
Updated: 2016-05-27
Packaged: 2018-07-10 12:53:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,446
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6985963
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HannaVictoria/pseuds/HannaVictoria
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>How it begins. Except this isn't the beginning. Where is the beginning? With the Jones boys clawing their way to moonlight? Chainey alone and confused? With the first mindless to ever raise? How about with a nosy goth kid where he has no business being? Micah's got alot going for him, his father is aloof but present, and he's never wanted for anything material. He just lost to people important to him. The apocalypse is just outside the walls. There's a few things besides that, but then teens will get depressed about just about anything right? Drama happens, mistakes get made, who's to say that's different when the "delinquent" kids are a bunch of cultists?</p>
            </blockquote>





	Around the Dinner Table

**Author's Note:**

> Micah is the voice of optimism! No really, guys where are you going? But seriously Micah will be are "everyman" because we were all mildly spoiled gay goth boys in high school right? First things first if your actually reading this and didn't read the series page... or summary Parker is also dead 'n walking 'mkay.

He’d been low, so bad his annoyingly inscrutable dad was noticeably concerned. He’d latched on to the weirdness around him because, why not? His best friend was dead and so was his big brother. It hurt realizing only now how much he’d been Micah’s big brother too. Lately though that was often intertwined with the feeling he was being watched.

PJ had always been there with an iced tea and a deviled egg when Micah was legitimately miserable. Then a few month’s after the funeral he began finding them left around a lot without explanation. Some were in places where he could believe maybe his dad was just lying when he said it wasn’t him ‘Wouldn’t be the first time he played dumb.’ He was seriously starting to wonder what the man’s issue with openly showing he cared was.

Last week was the final straw. Blake, Alan, and Sean three homophobic idiots from school were starting with him. God bless them they’d given him a mourning period almost looked kind of sad about it too, but that was _long_ gone. Then the rock. He hadn’t imagined it, he was staring at the dent the outdoor field’s lighting right now. Now the trio wasn’t bugging him because they thought he was haunted. Apparently Davey’s ghost had super strength?

Except… he kept catching figures out of the corner of his eye. Solid Figures. He’d already tried his favorite snacks, tonight it was Spiderman. So much Spiderman and Friendship is Magic and so much more. He’d fallen asleep eventually though. Then woke up with a mystery figure in the room. He promptly shouted and tased the figure before even looking who it was. 

‘Parker?!’ he couldn’t really believe this was happening… and that’s when his Dad barged in with particularly nasty looking pistol. “Micah What’s Wrong?!” the man scanned the room his son tensing and looking to the place his friend had fallen: nothing. “Jesus Christ Dad! You Realize I Could Have Snuck A Boy In Here! Neither of us wants that mental scarring, now scat!” his embarrassment at the notion was actually quite genuine.

“Fine tell your “friend” to get out from under the bed and promptly out of my house.” Micah paled. To his father this only confirmed his son’s story, but he didn’t realize he’d noticed something Micah actually had no previous knowledge of: where his guest had ended up. “OUT!” the man complied and Micah locked the door before peering under his bed “Parker?” he whispered.

He could just make out his friend’s face smiling in the darkness “Hey.” The goth’s eyes were drawn to the barbs still sticking out of the supposed dead man “You got…” PJ hmmed and pulled them out with no fanfare “I don’t so much feel pain anymore. Got to admit you were right about the stun gun: minimal risk of killing some unlucky burglar and muscles will seize, heartbeat or no.”

He climbed out from under the bed and Micah got his first real look at what had become of his friend. “You look like you joined the damn Cult.” Parker made a distressed/amused sound “Trust me if I’d done the “raccoon mask” deliberately it’s be a lot cleaner. These weren’t even at the same time.” He looked at him closer noticing the new tint to his skin “You and Davey get called back to Smurf Village then.”

He barely managed not to burst out laughing and alerting Mr. McQuistern “Guess again. Davey’s green.” ‘Davey’s alive. They’re both alive!’ “Either your parents are the best actors ever or… What is going on Parker?” He felt like Peej’s smiles were trying to tell him whole stories his words couldn’t. This one was sorrow, but also relief… and hope. ‘That’s the kind of sad that makes me feel worse for being depressed with my perfect life. Somebody needs to be kicked in the balls.’

“Who did this- no I meant the breaking my best friend thing. Their balls; my foot.” PJ giggled then looked self-conscious “Well she’s a woman and I kind of crushed her hands to powder. The second most responsible guy died. After that it’s too negligible to mention.” Micah didn’t bat an eye that his friend had seriously injured some woman. He was incredibly concerned as to what that woman must have done to Davey though. “Oh god, he must be a more overt version of this.” He’d meant the over protective streak.

A smile, “He’s Maggot Boy.” Micah laughed maniacally. “Jesus stop your dad’s going to think you’ve finally lost it!” he whispered. ‘That’s perfect!’ oh course Davey did something outrageous in an absurd situation “So are you “the Raccoon”?” Parker shifted a bit “I’ve… been called that…” he suddenly remembered all the talk of a growing raccoon problem.

“Explains why you stink! We’re sneaking you to the shower!” he whispered, not taking no for an answer ‘Since when is he this strong?’ He gotten the other boy’s shirt off by then “Dude you’re freezing!” that’s when he saw the Y incision “Jesus Christ.” He’d said at normal volume. He started look the boy over until eventually to many things didn’t add up.

“What is going on?” Parker smiled again the relief was more distant but there. Hope was prominent. He was also terrified. He put one of Micah’s hands over his heart and put the other to his jugular vein “Well let’s just… “alive” might not fit in the strictest definitions?” Micah looked at him weird “Wait, what?” his friend sighed pulling out of his space a little “Oh course. You don’t listen to the press conferences.”

“Did they catch the guy?” he asked honestly. PJ shook his head “No, no, before he died old man Laz finally gave folks a straight answer about us. The Aware. Basically I’m still me just… deader.” The idea still wasn’t clicking “Okay so what’s that mean for you?” Parker mulled over where to start, picking something harmless “Well for one _certain things_ don’t work.” His tone made painfully clear what he meant by things. Micah hissed “Bastion Nightingale is off the table?” fluttering-hope/lots-of-love/ **fear** /self-doubt “If he’d have me it would be awkward, but my heart still works fine in that sense.”

“Is that why you turned down the food?” The fear was out in force with it’s new friend panic “Dude?” Micah groaned, “Please tell me you don’t have to eat people?” Parker began folding in one himself till a frustrated groans from the other boy made him jump “How the hell’d you end up with all the shitty parts of being a vampire!” 

A little joy, hope returned along with lots of love “Zombie and you’d be surprised how much you can “vegetarian” that. Not even just grave- more like morgue robbing. Beyond transplants you’d be surprised how much of people ends up floating around separate from them and well, the noes knows.”

“The Institute has a ton of that don’t they?” Fear, resentment, a deep pain, a barely restrained hatred “We cut ties with them a long time ago.” ‘Now I know who dead-guy-I-wanna-maim is.’ He still had trouble wrapping his head around them being dead but he didn’t want to even think of what could have forced that split.

“So why the disappearing act, why not just go home?” “Cause if some sacred son of a bitch with a gun tries to “put me back where I belong” I’d really rather it not be my Dad.” The resigned tone gave Micah chills “He wouldn’t-” “Then one of the neighbors then. What am I going to do file charges?” he’d never heard his friend sound quite so cynical. 

‘Wasn’t the bastard cremated? Dammit how do you kick ashes?!’ he was sincerely asking if a way existed “So the Institute doesn’t think you’re people?” the venom in his voice Parker found strangely comforting ‘Please don’t end up dying for me.’ “Not everyone. The guy in charge now Noah he sees us, but most of their power died with the old guy and no one takes him seriously anyway.”

“Okay so _you_ can’t be seen. There any other dead guys I can recommend my Dad to? Cause this needs to go through the damn courts.” The Aware looked at his friend “And if they shoot it down?” “You think that’ll be the end? Roe V. Wade settle abortion? The courts can be a way to start an important conversation. You already said people know you exist who do you think is going to control that conversation if you just hide?”

“Problem one,” he really shouldn’t be telling him this “there’s a fourth Aware and he’s kind of the serial killer.” Micah blinked a few times “Please tell me the first problem is the worst one?” “He’s his own set of problems. His ‘method’ includes a lot of corpse desecration that has nothing to do with eating, in fact he tends to give stray cats the leftovers.” 

He noticed Micah had started fiddling with his cross in some serious thought “What do you three do when you come across more than you need?” Parker shrugged, a sudden interest in the carpet “Owen’s transient. We have a freezer. Can’t say that prep is terribly easy in any sense of the word.” 

Micah winced in sympathy. He couldn’t conceive what that must be like, but his brain supplied the idea of eating Carol his childhood pet rabbit. “And you got Davey to let you help with this how?”

‘Was there first hand experience in my voice?’ he wondered how he’d take the answer “It wasn’t an issue of let. Chainey can stomach it okay, but till he came around I was it. Davey can’t.”

Micah couldn’t say he was shocked. Davey had lines he wouldn’t cross, that was his strength and his failing. Parker would go to the ends of the earth for the ones he loved, that was his strength and his failing. “I’m going with you.” Parker did a double take “What?”

“We’re three hours into Saturday I’ll leave a note for Dad telling him I haven’t been kidnapped and then we are going out this window to wherever it is your living.” ‘Oh god, he’s serious. I’m sorry Mr. McQuistern we were a terrible influence.’

He watched as Micah actually started tying bed sheets together “Stop. I can take you.” It was awkward since he and Micah were about the same size, but then for the same reason he had trouble trying to carry anyone who wasn’t a kid. 

Having Micah meant he couldn’t take the normal route “Jesus, you guys really are superheroes.” He said in exasperated tone. “Well there had to be something cool.” It was nice to have a chance to brag for once, because he could rip a car door off. Yeah that was a problem if he went “feral” and tried to eat someone that was a huge problem, but the rest of the time it was pretty neat!

Eventually they came to the abandoned part of the city. “Sealed the first floor off, guess that’s one way to deal with zombies.” People seemed to be building a lot of improvised footbridges between the buildings. It was honestly pretty dead. The people who were out there noticed them a couple seemed honestly confused. Suddenly Parker grabbed his hand like they were going to run.

“Hey who the heck do you think you are kid?!” a shout came from the alley they had just passed. The dead boy cursed, squeezing his hand tighter “Leave him be Shiloh! You guys need to stop terrorizing people.” Shiloh was scruffy and skinny, but he had one hell of a viscous streak 

“We are hanging out in an alley, we just want to know who your new boyfriend is?” A girls voice called out “Hey! Two gay guys can occupy the same space with anything happening you Neanderthals!!” he was so tired of this happening. 

The cult kids stood dumbstruck at the sudden outburst. Parker coughed “Also I’m dead.” because Micah had forgotten that little detail. Which Marcy noticed and latched on to “Oh my gosh! You knew him! And your being all “accepting” that’s _adorable_!”

He disliked her instantly “Look Bitch, go play rebel with an asinine cause somewhere else. I honestly don’t hate the Cult, because would require me to care. I don’t, so bye.” ‘That was probably incredibly stupid. Way to introduce yourself to the Cult Micah, not like they’re insane or anything.’

The girl slipped closer to them not flinching when Parker leveled a warning glare at her “So you don’t want to know about Boli Shah?” he rolled his eyes “It’s a Haitian family loa. I have “the google”.” He mocked “Not that Hijacking a centuries old multinational faith in the name of your “I’m far to much of a special snowflake for some fucking therapy” wasn’t just **super** , but news flash the goddamn zombie apocalypse happened to everyone else yet the grand majority wonder of wonders, manages not to be an asshole about it. Also I’m Methodist. Very sincerely Methodist.”

““Being an asshole” are you serious kid?” she proceeded to try and invade his space some more “The world ended yet everyone’s just goes to work or school or whatever. Meandering around just like the little darlings on the other side of the wall. They’ve got a purpose at least. They get hungry, like your friend.” Parker and Micah both scowled “I like zombies. They don’t cheat, they don’t lie, they don’t steal, they don’t murder.” because by her previous logic they didn’t.

“But hey if you want to waste your time trying to talk to the Bondye directly be my guest!” she smiled mockingly “I know what that is.” Micah growled defensively “Right, right “the google” if you read more than a few paragraph you might have known there is no one way to practice Vodou. So stop labeling us with that “Satanism” crap cause frankly you seem a little too smart for that. Bonne Nuit, mon petit anges.”

Micah stared at the retreating cultists “I don’t know what was up with that accent, but if she was trying to leave me questioning whether I was just threatened or hit on she succeeded.” PJ sighed “Probably. She hits on everyone.”

He couldn’t help but wonder what was a the end of this trippy little rainbow ‘If Parker is this overprotective I’m surprised Davey hasn’t hogtied him in bubble wrap yet.’ Even with the world literally ending around them they’d always managed to be some relatively carefree kids, but then considering the worries of a flesh-eating cadaver? ‘Not to complain about having my two favorite reasons to get out of my fucking bed in the mourning.’

Eventually they came to a warehouse “Micah? Parker what the hell?!” he knew that voice “Hey, Davey.” He turned around to see his old friend very tense and now in mint “In his defense I went and set a trap for him like he was Santa Claus or something.” Parker side eyed him and asked “How is that in my defense, also I don’t remember any of your Santa-based plans involving a taser.” He laughed “Yeah, well Santa never snuck up on me.”

“Okay Peej so who’s your friend?” ‘How does someone that tall sneak like that?’ “Name’s Micah. Don’t suppose have had any luck where these two and trouble are concerned?” the man he presumed to be Chainey looked at him for a long moment before smiling “I don’t even know anymore. These two are a terrible influence.”

He smiled like a maniac “They really are.” accompanied by a nostalgic wistful tone. PJ gave a smile that said he was ready to troll “Man who just had a “religious debate” with Marcy says what?”

The taller zombie gave a corked smile somewhere between “I’m impressed” and “your insane” Davey was halfway to the floor laughing. Micah played along “Whatever do you mean, I sensed the start of a beautiful friendship.”

Another round of laughs and the taller guy was for reasons he couldn’t discern just unapolitically beaming at him. “So does dye-job have a name?” he asked the man in question.

He reached for his hair like he’d forgotten it was three colors “Chainey. Anthony Chainey technically, but no one calls me that. Which is more like no one I can remember calls me that, but that’s not exactly a lot of people.”

“He has amnesia probably not related to being an Aware atleast directly. I’d like to address why we’re involving Micah in all this?” Chainey was remarkably tolerant to the abrupt change in subject.

Micah in turn gave a look worthy of his father “In what chasing serial killers? What kind of plan is that! I don’t care if he’s Jimmy Carter back from the dead how is a half-assed superhero gig anything resembling a sane solution?”

Davey was somewhere between ticked off and alarmed he’d been told so much. Parker had this smile caught between resigned and amused. Chainey gave a thoughtful look before commenting “I don’t think Carter’s dead yet?”

As he said that the garage door went up than down Sam casually calling out “No he isn’t.” she took note of their extra guest “Well, hello there?”

Micah sighed a sincere smile “Good, I was starting to wonder if they were hanging out with live people at all.” Davey gave an admonishing shove to his head; he was almost too overcome with nostalgia to shake him off.

“Sam this is Micah, he kinda caught me.” Micah snorted “Well your too short to be the shadowy figure that time, so unless Chainey kicked that rock, hard enough to dent a pole four feet from Blake’s head?”

Parker gave a giant grin “This before or after you started leaving out all my old favorites like you were trying to lure out E.T.?” Micah shrugged.

“So basically it’s totally my fault?” Davey asked wearily. “That those three think I’m fucking haunted? Yeah! But the bullying’s back down for the moment so… mission accomplished?”

“So how do you know these guys?” she shifted a bit “Oh, they lost me my job.” Davey laughed “You quit.” She smiled at him “Damn straight I did. Even if Lazaro had no knowledge… None of that happened in a vacuum everyone was complicit, me included.”

Davey aborted putting a hand on her shoulder before shoving them in his pockets awkward and angry at everything, self included. Micah sighed pulling the woman over to the side “Can I borrow you for a minute?” she looked apprehensive but followed regardless “Look, Micah. I know your concerned but this isn’t my story to tell.”

He looked at her trying not to glare or seem to sarcastic and by her expression was failing at atleast one “Life seemed fit to decide _my brothers_ hadn’t suffered enough fucking dying. I don’t need to know how. What I need to make sure someone can’t just pick up where whoever left off on a whim! You can help, pleasure to meet you; you fuck these boys and I am dumping my nail polish remover down your throat.”

She seemed to take threats on her person fairly well “So are you going with the whole cape thing?” He looked at her “No I’m going to do what real rich kids do: ask my Dad/lawyer how we can swing “custody over remains” into “right to unlife”.” Now she looked at him “Institute has right to every body in the city _especially_ if it gets up.”

“Don’t suppose that’s an executive prerogative?” she sighed “Yeah, but not for long. Bright side is that their powerbase is going to implode whether Noah commits political suicide back this madness or not.” It went back and forth like that for a long while. Micah liked her; Sam was going to keep these boys safe in the short-term come hell or high water.

His father stared as he walked through the front door not even pretending he hadn’t been out. After kicking off his shoes “So I went through outer limits got into an argument about religion with a culty and hung out with some squatters all night. How would you like an “Aware” for a client?”

“Well I’d have to get either Arthur or Catherine to be my client until we got a ruling that would give an Aware the right to take legal action on their own behalf and even then they aren’t eighteen.” Because of course his father knew right away ‘damn psychic parents’ he wasn’t really upset.

“How about an almost certainly adult aware?”

**Author's Note:**

> At some point or another Micah's Dad morphed into some kind of stoic anime character and I don't know in my defense when I stopped reading he had maybe three character traits. Marcy has appeared (I know that's not her name in the comics) can't wait to have fun with the cult! But who cares Micah and Parker are being cute!! Half the reason this was written. 
> 
> Unrelated if the story didn't make it clear PJ is light blue, well blueish-green/greenish-blue perhaps? Long story short there will be more Aware eventually I am setting up a color spectrum. 
> 
> These boys seem to have no secrets, besides you know being "alive" for like a year and not telling. After that all bets were off. Not like this was his best friend or anything. Regardless this is the begining of the Past Fics to Borrowed times Future Fics. Surely we didn't get from point A to B on Micah's bullheadedness alone? Maybe Marcy and the cultists won't just make everything worse?


End file.
